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Psilocybin patent highlights the swirling battle over psychedelics IP – STAT – STAT

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

One of the leading companies racing to develop psychedelics as legal medicines was granted a patent last week for a formulation of psilocybin the hallucinogenic compound found in magic mushrooms a decision that highlights the increasingly intense battle around intellectual property for potential medicines in this rapidly growing sector.

This is Compass Pathways fourth U.S. patent, but its first for a form of psilocybin the company isnt using in its clinical trials on treatment-resistant depression. The patent works to expand their intellectual property kingdom, said Mason Marks, senior fellow and project lead on the Project on Psychedelics Law and Regulation at Harvard Law School: Like a landlord would want to expand and buy more properties, theyre trying to lock up as much IP as they can to solidify their position in the market.

The patent, which covers a form of synthetic psilocybin known as Form A hydrate and methods of producing it, is useful to Compass as a way to restrict competitors who may be working with a different form of psilocybin. If another company creates psilocybin using that particular structure, then Compass will now have grounds to block them.

I have no doubts the reasons behind this are to protect a competitive position around psilocybin, said Graham Pechenik, patent attorney and founder of Calyx Law. The latest patent decision is likely to be challenged by those who believe that Form A hydrate is not new, and so cannot be patented.

Compass defended its decision to seek a patent for its formulation. As always were expecting challenges, said Compasss co-founder and president Lars Christian Wilde. We believe what weve found is novel and inventive. Were confident in our IP strategy.

Research and investment in psychedelics has accelerated in recent years. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted breakthrough therapy designation to psilocybin and MDMA (also known as molly or ecstasy), for treatment of depression and PTSD, respectively, a sign that the agency is open to approval if the drugs are shown to be effective and safe in trials. The potential market is huge and extremely lucrative, predicted to be valued at $7 billion by 2027, according to an analysis from Data Bridge Market Research.

Psychedelic drugs, though, both exist in nature and have been studied for decades MDMA was first synthesized in 1912 and psilocybin in 1958. This makes it challenging for pharmaceutical companies to follow traditional approaches of patenting newly discovered drugs to protect their investments and fend off competitors. Instead, companies are creating more niche patents, such as Compasss IP on various forms of psilocybin: They need to figure out how to protect this naturally occurring substance, said Citi analyst Neena Bitritto-Garg. (Citigroup has received compensation from atai life sciences, which owns more than 20% of Compass, for investment banking and other services.)

There is also considerable debate and competition within the industry about whether and how these drugs should be patented. Compass is due to publish results from a Phase 2b trial with 233 patients for psilocybin therapy for treatment-resistant depression before the end of this year. Meanwhile, the non-profit Usona Institute, which is anti-patent, is running a Phase 2b psilocybin trial for people with major depressive disorder.

Carey Turnbull, a philanthropist who is a board member of several psychedelic non-profits including Usona Institute, created another non-profit, Freedom to Operate, to fight patents that infringe on existing knowledge. He believes Compasss latest patent should not stand.

From FTOs ongoing research, we understand that it is nearly impossible to crystallize psilocybin and not obtain this hydrate, Turnbull wrote to STAT. There are several examples of it in the prior art. He declined to give details of the existing examples while still putting together a report.

Usona itself is not worried about psilocybin patents affecting its work, said president Bill Linton: The non-profit is using a version of the drug that has been in the public domain since 1958.

Psychedelic patents are currently so turbulent, with waves of applications and challenges, in part because many patent examiners are unfamiliar with the space and the existing research, said Marks. The Usona Institute is currently building out a library of existing research, Porta Sophia Psychedelic Prior Art Library, to help prevent patents being awarded on pre-existing knowledge. Psilocybin was first synthesized in the 1950s and, given the large numbers of laboratories, Marks said hes doubtful there are truly novel formulations left to be patented.

Even among psychedelic patents that meet the technical definition of novelty, the rush to protect formulations simply to block competition, rather than patenting an innovation thats useful to patients, is contrary to the spirit of IP law, said Marks. U.S. patent law technically requires utility, but this is rarely applied in practice: Effectively it doesnt exist. Other countries, such as India, are far more strict about creating patents that are useful for patients, making IP grabs more difficult, as Marks outlines in a forthcoming Harvard Law Review Forum on psychedelic patents.

It could be a patent on something thats useless, said Marks on the Compasss latest patent. I would not make any assumption that it makes any real benefit.

Different formulations of psilocybin could have varying levels of effectiveness, and Wilde of Compass said the company is exploring whether the latest form could be particularly beneficial under certain conditions.

In his view, all patents are beneficial. IP allows companies to protect innovation, and therefore finance research and bring drugs to patients, he said: Any patent therefore is in the interest of patients and more broadly in the interest of the field.

Those pushing back argue that a small number of companies owning the rights to these drugs will make any treatments that are approved more expensive. If the FDA approves psilocybin following Compass Pathways research, for example, only the patented synthetic version of the drug would be legal medicine, rather than the naturally occurring substance. It will affect the barriers to entry for scientific research and the cost to accessing these therapies, said Marks.

For investors, the crucial question is whether patents are approved and withstand challenges. Ethical questions are less of a concern, said Citis Bitritto-Gard: Investors are profit-seeking.

So as psilocybin slowly edges toward approval as a medicine, fights over every line of intellectual property are likely to grow fiercer. The eventual patent decisions will determine who controls the supply of psilocybin, and who profits off this hallucinogenic drug.

Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the date when psilocybin was first synthesized.

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Psilocybin patent highlights the swirling battle over psychedelics IP - STAT - STAT

The people turning to psychedelics on their deathbeds – The Independent

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

Thomas Hartle is an unlikely psychedelics adventurer. The 53-year-old father of two from Saskatoon, Canada, describes himself as being about as ordinary and boring as white bread. Until a few years ago, he had never even considered taking any sort of illegal substance. I grew up in the This is your brain on drugs generation, he tells me when we speak over a video call, referring to the notorious anti-drugs campaign launched in 1987 which featured that memorable slogan over the image of an egg frying on a skillet. I considered that whole class of drugs as not just unhelpful, but as something that ruins peoples lives.

In 2016, Hartle was diagnosed with stage four colon cancer. He went through multiple rounds of chemotherapy and radiation treatment, but the cancer returned in August 2019. Faced with the very real prospect of death, he decided to seek out new ways of coping. It was then he remembered research hed come across online, published by Johns Hopkins Medicine in 2016, which suggested (via a small sample of 51 patients) that therapeutic use of psilocybin the active ingredient in magic mushrooms could help decrease depression and anxiety in patients with life-threatening cancer.

Last year, Hartle wrote to Canadas Ministry of Controlled Substances to ask for a legal exemption to try psilocybin for himself. He was one of four patients in the country to be granted permission and became the first Canadian to legally experience a psychedelic therapy session on 12 August 2020. The results were immediate, and measurable. The day before, Hartle had registered 36 on the Beck Anxiety Inventory, on which any score above 25 is considered severe anxiety. The following day, using the same metric, he scored six, considered minimal. I knocked 30 points off my standing level of anxiety, says Hartle, And that really lasted for a very long time.

For Hartle, the benefits of psilocybin therapy went far beyond simply reducing his fear and anxiety over dying. He says he found the experience itself to be a profound one, and that it gave him new belief in the possibility of life after death. My views on death have really changed tremendously, he says. Before, life after death was a sort of academic, intellectual concept, whereas now it feels tangible. Ive physically experienced states of consciousness that have nothing to do with this life or anything that I would identify with Thomas.

Hartle is not alone in reporting this kind of positive response. Laurie Brooks, a 53-year-old from Abbotsford, British Columbia, was another of the original group of four patients granted permission to try psilocybin therapy in Canada last year. She also has colon cancer, and in August 2019 her doctors told her she may only have six months to a year to live. It was then she became interested in psychedelic therapy. If this was it for me, I didnt want to be crying and depressed, she says. So I did my trip, and it was such a profound change. I went from feeling desperate, alone and grief-stricken to the next day feeling as if I were able to see my cancer in a box beside me on the floor. I felt in control, rather than it controlling me, and that made a huge difference. A lot of healing has come from that.

(Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Psilocybin was banned globally as part of the UN Convention on Psychotropic Substances in 1971, primarily for political reasons as psychedelics were considered a destabilising influence whichthreatened established cultural norms. Very little research was done into the potential of psychedelics for the next two decades, but since the early Nineties there have been a resurgence in clinical trials and the approach to psilocybin is now more lenient in some other countries. As well as the compassionate use allowances that gave Hartle and Brooks access to psychedelic therapy in Canada, several areas of the United States have already relaxed legislation around psilocybin. City councils in Denver, Colorado and Oakland, California have both decriminalised magic mushrooms, while in November last year Oregon became the first state to legalise the use of psilocybin for a two-year window for both recreational and therapeutic use.

Psilocybin is a Class A drug in the UK. It is also listed as a Schedule 1 drug under the Misuse of Drugs Regulations (along with substances like MDMA and LSD), which means it cannot be lawfully possessed or prescribed and that a Home Office licence is needed before it can be used in research. Despite the optimistic results of some recent research, sample sizes have been small. Although it is not considered an addictive drug, the potential for a bad trip remains, during which users may experience disturbing hallucinations, panic, delirium and psychosis. Some users may even experience Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder (HPPD), often referred to as flashbacks, involving perceptual changes lasting weeks or months which can require medical attention.

But pressure is growing on governments around the world to allow greater research into psychedelic therapy in general. Campaigners like Conservative MP Crispin Blunt are calling for psilocybin to be moved to Schedule 2, which would enable the drug to be used in scientific and medical research. Last month,Mr Blunt called on Boris Johnsonto cut through the current barriers to research into psilocybin and similar compounds in the UK.

In response, the Prime Minister said only that his government will consider the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs recent advice on reducing barriers to research with controlled drugs such as the one he describes, and we will be getting back to him as soon as possible. British government pronouncements on this subject often resemble a classic Catch-22: They will allow further research only once further research has been done.

Ive interviewed patients who have used psychedelics and what I hear from them is that it allowed them to talk about scary things

Dr Anthony Back, director of palliative care at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance

These developments have been welcomed by medical professionals like Dr Anthony Back, the director of palliative care at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance and a professor of medicine at the University of Washington. Dr Back has spent years studying the way that doctors communicate with patients who are at the end of their lives, and believes the current system often fails both parties. After reading the psilocybin research from Johns Hopkins, as well as a similar study at NYU, Dr Back decided to investigate for himself.

I arranged to have an underground experience with psilocybin. That experience made me think: Wow! There is really something to this. It really is a game changer. His own positive experience has been mirrored by the patients hes spoken to. Ive now interviewed a bunch of patients who have used psychedelics, both in studies and underground, and what I hear from them is that it allowed them to talk about scary things, he says. Usually, our defences go up when we try to talk about these subjects. It turns out, unlike what our egos normally think, that actually we arent destroyed if we talk about death. In fact, something really important and even beautiful can happen.

(Getty Images)

Dr Back offers some insight into how psychedelics are able to have such a transformative impact on brain function. One important aspect is that they physically reduce blood flow to whats known as the default mode network. The default mode network is where all of our stories about me are created. Im the kind of person who likes this, Im not the kind of person who does that, explains Dr Back. What psychedelics do is disrupt all those usual little stories that we have about ourselves. All of a sudden, were able to make connections between things that are already in our brains but that arent usually connected. Psychedelics give you a window of time when you can make all these different connections that are outside of your usual habits of thinking. This description rings true to Thomas Hartle, who offers a metaphor. Its the equivalent of fresh, fallen snow, says Hartle. Where all the old pathways used to be, theres now this fresh covering.

Its the equivalent of fresh, fallen snow. Where all the old pathways used to be, theres now this fresh covering

Thomas Hartle

Part of the reason some doctors and patients are so intrigued by psychedelic therapy is that they believe it provides a form of treatment which conventional medicines simply cant offer, as the San Francisco-based physician Dr Shoshana Ungerleider explains. As MDs, when we see somebody anxious or distressed, we prescribe them medicine like a benzo [Benzodiazepines, drugs used to treat anxiety and depression] or an opiate to calm them down or dull their senses, she points out. Weve been doing that for a long time, because those are the sorts of tools we have, but what that also does is blunt your ability to live fully and be present.

Hoping to open conversations about the best ways to improve end-of-life care, Dr Ungerleider founded the non-profit End Well in 2017. She was so impressed by the potential of psychedelics to transform the field that earlier this month she organised The End In Mind, a virtual conference dedicated specifically to the use of psychedelics. From my point of view, the power of these medicines is that we can not only reduce physical pain symptoms, but also the emotional distress that so many people have around this time of life, she says, urging politicians like the Prime Minister to remove the barriers that still stand against further research. I think we have an obligation as a society to really investigate this fully.

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The people turning to psychedelics on their deathbeds - The Independent

Meet Delic Announces Full Lineup of Music, Visual and Performance Artists for Two-Day Immersive Edutainment Experience – Yahoo Finance

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

Entertainers join world's leading psychedelic and wellness thought and business leaders at Meet Delic, the revolutionary event taking place at AREA15 in Las Vegas, Nevada, November 6 7, 2021

VANCOUVER, BC, Nov. 2, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Delic Holdings Corp ("Delic" or the "Company") (CSE: DELC) (OTC: DELCF) (FRA: 6X0) (Original Source), a leader in new medicines and treatments for a modern world, today released the full entertainment lineup for Meet Delic, the two-day premier psychedelics event. From pop-royalty dance performers and groundbreaking visual experiences to new technologies and research, thought-provoking presentations, and the world's largest psychedelic business expo, there will be something for everyone to explore.

Meet Delic Entertainment Lineup (CNW Group/Delic Holdings Inc.)

Meet Delic is the largest and most comprehensive event to learn about the intersection of psychedelics, wellness, and business with like-minded visionaries. The entertainment lineup spans the worlds of music, visual technology, and performance art and will be joining headliners Lamar Odom, Duncan Trussell, Alyson Charles, Ifetayo Harvey, Dr. Carl Hart, George Goldsmith, Ekaterina Malievskaia, M.D., Zappy Zapolin, Aubrey Marcus and many more for an unforgettable experience:

Little Miss Nasty, November 6 and 7: Beyonc, Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, Britney Spears, Usher, Katy Perry, Nick Jonas and Lady Gaga. These superstars are only some of the artists on this high-energy dance duo's impressive resume. What started as a "rock and roll burlesque" dance show in Los Angeles has evolved into a performance art group and lifestyle brand with global tours and multiple sold-out residencies in Las Vegas, Long Beach and San Francisco.

Sporeganic, November 6 and 7: Scott Hedstrom, whose pseudonym is Sporeganic, has created spectacular live visual experiences at shows for artists such as The Grateful Dead side project Billy & The Kids, STS9, Android Jones and CloZee. As the Technical Director at Vision Agency, he and his team created the psychedelic visuals tool, Microdose VR, which brings audiences on cinematic journeys through psychedelic landscapes. Hedstrom is focused on building the technology behind the upcoming biofeedback VR experience, Chromadose.

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DJ David Starfire & Live VJ Jonathan Singer, November 6: This duo will celebrate the legends of psychedelia through a journey of sight and sound during a live tribute featuring the music of The Grateful Dead, The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Jefferson Airplane and Jimi Hendrix. A special live, immersive 360 visual performance set to Pink Floyd's "Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun" and Futuristic Psychedelia Dance and Techno themes featuring the music of Tipper, Desert Dwellers and David Starfire will close out the set.

Mindchatter, November 7: New York City-based singer, songwriter and producer Bryce Connolly, who goes by Mindchatter, is known for creating sounds that defy genre and writing lyrics tinged with introspection. His first single "Trippy'' was released in 2019, growing his avid fan base and garnering praise from BBC Radio 1's renowned DJ, Pete Tong. In 2020 Mindchatter debuted his first album, Imaginary Audience, and kicked off his own slate of headlining shows that combine his ethereal beats with one-of-a-kind visual experiences.

Meet Delic is committed to bringing awareness of the science-backed benefits of psychedelics and business opportunities to the mainstream and larger global community by reframing the psychedelic conversation. The twenty hours of panels and keynotes will include an array of topics such as Accelerating Adaptation: What Psychedelic States can teach us about Healing, Aphrodisiacs and Psychedelics: A History of Medicine for Love, Fentanyl in our Drugs, Ketamine: An Intimate Discussion on the New Wonder Drug for PTSD, Deciphering the Medical Potential of Psychedelics, A Discussion with George Goldsmith & Ekaterina Malievskaia featuring Clara Burtenshaw, Psychedelics and Futurism.

Tickets are now available for the two-day experience. For more information please visit, meetdelic.com. Follow us on @meetdelic on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

Meet Delic is a subsidiary of Delic, which is focused on addressing the mental health crisis by bringing psychedelic wellness to the mainstream. The company does this through an umbrella of related owned and operated businesses to support scaling the impact and reach of treatment, including 1) the nation's largest and most accessible network of psychedelic wellness clinics to administer effective treatments 2) a licensed lab to develop IP, R&D and innovative high quality and safe product lines and 3) trusted media and e-commerce platforms and in-person events like Meet Delic to market the services directly to patients and consumers and gain data.

About Meet DelicMeet Delic is the world's premier psychedelic and wellness edutainment event catering to both curious newcomers, businesses and thought leaders. Held in AREA15, an immersive and experiential entertainment complex in the heart of Las Vegas, the exciting two-day event features industry entrepreneurs, consumers, psychonauts and leading voices in research and science. Meet Delic is the largest and most comprehensive event to learn about the intersection of psychedelics, health and wellness and culture, how to start or grow your business, connect with likeminded visionaries, enjoy fun social activities, and experience the acceleration of this worldwide movement.

About Delic CorpDelic is a leader in new medicines and treatments for a modern world, improving access to health benefits across the country and reframing the conversation on psychedelics. The company owns and operates an umbrella of related businesses, including the largest chain of psychedelic wellness clinics in the country, including Ketamine Infusion Centers and Ketamine Wellness Centers; the only licensed entity by Health Canada to exclusively focus on research and development of psilocybin vaporization technology, Delic Labs; the premier psychedelic wellness event, Meet Delic; and trusted media and e-commerce platforms Reality Sandwich and Delic Radio. Delic is backed by a team of industry and cannabis veterans and a diverse network, whose mission is to provide education, research, high-quality products, and effective treatment options to the masses.

The Canadian Securities Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Information and Statements

This press release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation and may also contain statements that may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking information and forward-looking statements are not representative of historical facts or information or current condition, but instead represent only the Company's beliefs regarding future events, plans or objectives, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside of Delic's control. Generally, such forward-looking information or forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or may contain statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "will continue", "will occur" or "will be achieved".

By identifying such information and statements in this manner, Delic is alerting the reader that such information and statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Delic to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such information and statements. In addition, in connection with the forward-looking information and forward-looking statements contained in this press release, Delic has made certain assumptions.

Should one or more of these risks, uncertainties or other factors materialize, or should assumptions underlying the forward-looking information or statements prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein as intended, planned, anticipated, believed, estimated or expected.

Although Delic believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing, and the expectations contained in, the forward-looking information and statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information and statements, and no assurance or guarantee can be given that such forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information and statements. The forward-looking information and forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release, and Delic does not undertake to update any forward-looking information and/or forward-looking statements that are contained or referenced herein, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. All subsequent written and oral forward- looking information and statements attributable to Delic or persons acting on its behalf is expressly qualified in its entirety by this notice.

Meet Delic logo (CNW Group/Delic Holdings Inc.)

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Meet Delic Announces Full Lineup of Music, Visual and Performance Artists for Two-Day Immersive Edutainment Experience - Yahoo Finance

North America Continues Leading The Way In Psychedelic Wellness – PRNewswire

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

PALM BEACH, Fla., Oct. 26, 2021 /PRNewswire/ --FinancialNewsMedia.com News Commentary- The global psychedelic drugs market remains at an early stage in its life cycle, with most companies currently developing their go-to-market strategy. The market players of psychedelics are involved in the clinical trials of several psychedelic drugs to address mental health, which continues to present significant unmet need.For the behavioral health industry, psychedelics present an opportunity to potentially bolster providers' treatment toolbox and help patients for whom current psychiatric medications have failed. While it's unclear exactly what the future of psychedelics in the U.S. behavioral health industry will look like, Canadians are looking at a clearer picture. When it comes to psychedelic wellness, Canada is leading the way, accordingto Behavioral Health Business. They said: Regulations were recently relaxed there to make it easier for alternative medicine companies to develop psychedelic behavioral health treatments.Those newfound flexibilities are similar to right-to-try laws in the US, which allow terminally ill patients to use experimental therapies that have passed Phase I in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's approval process.The difference, however, is that only one state in the US along with several municipalities has authorized exemptions for psilocybin; meanwhile, all 13 Canadian provinces and territories currently have exemptions for the psychedelic substance often used as a source for alternative behavioral health treatments." Active Companies active today in markets include: Cybin Inc. (NYSE: CYBN) (NEO: CYBN), COMPASS Pathways plc (NASDAQ: CMPS), Mind Medicine (MindMed) Inc. (NASDAQ: MNMD), Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY), Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ).

Under the care of a clinician, patients using psilocybin for behavioral health treatment typically receive the psychedelic drug to treat conditions like stress, anxiety and depression, especially for patients who have not had success using other treatments or are facing terminal illnesses. As with the US, possession of psilocybin mushrooms in Canada is illegal. However, last August, Health Canada the country's regulatory health body approved the use of psilocybin to treat four terminally ill patients for anxiety, stress and depression.Several months later, in December,Health Canada also approved exemptions to a group of doctors and therapiststo use psilocybin for research purposes, allowing them to study its effects on patients in hopes of developing therapies for future use. As a result, British Columbia which is also home to a number of Canadian cannabis companies has become a hotbed for psychedelic wellness startups.

Cybin Inc. (NYSE AMERICAN: CYBN) (NEO: CYBN) BREAKING NEWS: Cybin Announces FDA Investigational New Drug Authorization of Cybin's Sponsored Feasibility Study using Kernel Flow Technology - Cybin Inc. ("Cybin" or the "Company"), a biotechnology company focused on progressing psychedelic therapeutics, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") has authorized an Investigational New Drug ("IND") application to proceed with the Company's sponsored feasibility study using Kernel's Flow technology to measure ketamine's psychedelic effect on cerebral cortex hemodynamics.

"The word psychedelic means 'mind-manifesting,' but what has been missing is useful 'mind-imaging'the ability to dynamically trace the neural correlates of human conscious experience. Conventional neuroimaging just isn't dynamic enough to study the psychedelic experience in the brain as it happens. This study of ketamine's psychedelic effects while wearing headgear equipped with sensors to record brain activity could open up new frontiers of understanding," said Dr. Alex Belser, Cybin's Chief Clinical Officer.

Leveraging Kernel's quantitative neuroimaging technology ("Kernel Flow") may lead to new frontiers in psychedelic therapeutics by enabling the acquisition of longitudinal brain activity before, during and after a psychedelic experience, providing quantification of what was previously subjective patient reporting.

"Quantitatively measuring the brain within the context of a psychedelic experience is a promising frontier," said Bryan Johnson, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Kernel. "With Kernel Flow, Cybin's researchers can start putting numbers and quantification to subjective states of mind, including altered ones."

Kernel Flow uses pulsed light instead of continuous wave light to increase measured brain information. In contrast with electroencephalography ("EEG") electrodes that usually require gel on the head or functional magnetic resonance imaging ("fMRI") studies that require a participant to lie in a scanner, Kernel Flow is easily wearable. The entire system is the size and look of a bicycle helmet and could, in the future, be more broadly used for neuroscientific or physiological studies of brain activity during psychedelic use.

As part of Cybin's sponsorship of the feasibility study, the Company will retain an exclusive interest in any innovations that are discovered or developed through its independent analysis of the study findings. Kernel will hold the same rights relating to its Kernel technology. CONTINUEDRead the full Press Release for Cybin at: https://www.cybin.com/news

In other active company biotech news in the markets this week:

COMPASS Pathways plc (NASDAQ: CMPS), a mental health care company dedicated to accelerating patient access to evidence-based innovation in mental health, recently welcomed the topline data shared from an open-label study of psilocybin therapy for depression in cancer patients. Within one week of a single administration of COMP360 psilocybin therapy, 50% of participants achieved remission in depression symptoms, which was sustained for the eight week follow-up period.

This investigator-initiated feasibility study was conducted by Maryland Oncology Hematology at the Aquilino Cancer Center in Rockville, Maryland, USA. It was an open-label study involving 30 patients with cancer diagnosis and major depressive disorder (MDD), all of whom completed the study. Half of the participants had previously been treated for their current episode of depression with antidepressants and all were receiving active treatment for cancer; 19 participants had no previous experience with psychedelic substances. Patients were given a 25mg dose of COMP360 psilocybin in conjunction with psychological support from specially trained therapists, following the COMP360 psilocybin therapy protocol.

Mind Medicine (MindMed) Inc. (NASDAQ: MNMD), a leading biotech company developing psychedelic-inspired therapies, recently announced that Dr.Matthias Liechtipresented data from several ongoing studies at the INSIGHT Conference inBerlin, Germany. These investigator-initiated studies are being conducted as part of MindMed's ongoing collaboration with the UHB Liechti Lab.

"While both LSD and psilocybin have a long history in psychiatric research, psilocybin is being studied in a majority of ongoing clinical trials of psychedelics," said Dr. Liechti. "It is important for us to understand the acute effect characteristics of different psychedelics, and to understand how these substances interact with other treatments like antidepressants. We look forward to fully analyzing the exciting data produced by these studies and publishing our findings later this year."

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) recently announced the board of directors of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) has declared a dividend for the fourth quarter of 2021 of $0.85 per share on outstanding common stock.

The dividend is payable on December 10, 2021 to shareholders of record at the close of business on November 15, 2021.Lilly is a global health care leader that unites caring with discovery to create medicines that make life better for people around the world. We were founded more than a century ago by a man committed to creating high-quality medicines that meet real needs, and today we remain true to that mission in all our work. Across the globe, Lilly employees work to discover and bring life-changing medicines to those who need them, improve the understanding and management of disease, and give back to communities through philanthropy and volunteerism.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) The Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies ofJohnson & Johnson(Janssen) previously announced the submission of a New Drug Application (NDA) to theU.S. Food and Drug Administration(FDA) for esketamine nasal spray. Janssen is seeking FDA approval of esketamine for treatment-resistant depression in adults.

Esketamine is an investigational, rapidly acting antidepressant that works differently than currently available therapies for major depressive disorder. Through glutamate receptor modulation, esketamine is thought to help restore connections between brain cells in people with treatment-resistant depression.

"Of the nearly 300 million people who suffer from major depressive disorder worldwide, about one-third do not respond to currently available treatments.3,4This represents a major unmet public health need," saidMathai Mammen, M.D., Ph.D., Global Head, Janssen Research & Development, LLC. "We are committed to working with the FDA to bring this new treatment option toU.S.patients with treatment-resistant depression and to the medical community."

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North America Continues Leading The Way In Psychedelic Wellness - PRNewswire

Breaking the Habit: Psychedelic Stigma Fades as Research Points to Critical Use in Smoking Cessation and More – PRNewswire

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

NEW YORK, Nov. 1, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- There isn't a cigarette smoker in the world who doesn't know smoking is bad for them. The problems are that nicotine is one of the most highly addictive substances in the world, and for the nearly 70% of 34.1 million Americans who want to kick the habit, there aren't many smoking-cessation options that have proven safe and effective. Hope may be looming on the horizon, however, with new research building on prior studies that suggest psilocybin is not only a potential solution but also a more effective one. Leading a charge on this front is Mydecine Innovations Group(NEO: MYCO) (OTC: MYCOF) (FSE: 0NFA) (Profile), a biopharmaceutical firm formed in 2020 for the purpose of developing innovative therapeutics to treat PTSD, depression, anxiety, addiction and other mental health disorders. Mydecine is part of a renaissance for psychedelic medicine research that is showing real promise in addressing areas of unmet medical need. Those contributing to the resurgence includes peers such as COMPASS Pathways Plc(NASDAQ: CMPS), ATAI Life Sciences N.V.(NASDAQ: ATAI), Cybin Inc.(NYSE American: CYBN) and Field Trip Health Ltd.(NASDAQ: FTRP).

Click hereto view the custom infographic of the Mydecine Innovations Groupeditorial.

Chantix Recall Leaves $1 Billion Up for Grabs

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cigarette smoking is responsible for one of every five deaths in the United States annually, while the World Health Organization estimates tobacco-use costs at more than $1.4 trillion in health expenditures and lost productivity each year. It's not that people don't want to quit smoking; many do. CDC data shows that 55% of smokers have tried to quit, but only about 7.5% succeed.

The desperation for anti-smoking products is exemplified by the drug varenicline (brand name Chantix), which became a blockbuster with 2019 sales of $1.1 billion despite serious psychiatric side effects. Ultimately, Chantix was recalled in 2021, not for the psychiatric adverse events but for "theoretical potential increased cancer risk."

Perhaps new treatments involving psilocybin, the active psychedelic ingredient in "magic" mushrooms, will fill that $1 billion void. A small study by Johns Hopkins University published in "Journal of Psychopharmacology" compared smokers trying to quit using cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) plus varying doses of psilocybin to abstinence rates typically observed in smokers using other medications or CBT alone. The results showed 67% of the participants remained nicotine free at a 12-month follow-up, a substantial increase over success rates for other methods (typically 10% to 35%).

The study concluded that the "results suggest that in the context of a structured treatment program, psilocybin holds considerable promise in promoting long-term smoking abstinence." Johns Hopkins is conducting a larger efficacy study with compelling data to date, and this month received the first National Institute of Health (NIH) grant in more than 50 years to directly investigate the therapeutic effect of psilocybin for tobacco addiction.

Mydecine Innovations Group(NEO: MYCO) (OTC: MYCOF) (FSE: 0NFA)is an integral part of this landmark NIH-funded research led by Johns Hopkins, a three-year, multisite smoking cessation study being conducted in collaboration with University of Alabama at Birmingham and New York University. Mydecine will be supplying its lead drug candidate, MYCO-001 (99% pure psilocybin), for use in the clinical trials. The supply agreement, in the words of Mydecine CEO Josh Bartch, "not only offers a significant opportunity to further advance our drug development through safer and more viable results but demonstrates Mydecine's leadership position in the emerging psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy industry."

The joint work on the new clinical trial builds upon the budding relationship between Mydecine and Johns Hopkins, considered the top university for psychedelic research globally. Denver-based Mydecine was already working with the team of Dr. Matthew Johnson, a psychedelics authority and professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Johns Hopkins, on smoking-cessation projects using psychedelics. In August that partnership parlayed into a five-year master collaboration research agreement to look at several novel therapies and compounds for the treatment of a multitude of mental health and addiction disorders. Johnson is the lead on the upcoming NIH-funded trials and will be lending his expertise to other upcoming clinical studies by Mydecine.

Catalyst: Clinical Trials for MYCO-001

Clinical trials are milestones and catalysts for biopharma companies, and Mydecine is staring at three of them in 2022 for MYCO-001. First is the NIH-funded, multicenter study. Second is a company-sponsored seamless phase 2/3 clinical trial also evaluating the administration of MYCO-001 with a structured smoking-cessation treatment program in nicotine-dependent individuals. The trials will run concurrently, and Johnson will be serving as principal investigator in both trials.

Encouraged by FDA commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb in 2017 to speed up drug development, a "seamless" clinical trial utilizes an adaptive design to combine two or more traditional phases of the FDA process, which can save not only considerable time but also significant money. Mydecine anticipates its investigational new drug (IND) meeting with the FDA this quarter and to commence another study in January 2022. The study protocol is expected to involve treating participants weekly in one-on-one sessions for five weeks prior to quitting smoking. Primary endpoints will be smoking abstinence at three, six and twelve months.

ResearchandMarkets.com estimates the global smoking cessation market to be growing 16.9% annually to reach $63.99 billion by 2026. The rapidly expanding market and room for new products to capture significant share likely underscore Roth Capital analyst Elemer Piros initiating coverage on Mydecine with a Buy rating and C$3 price target.

PTSD in Veterans, EMS and Front-Line Workers

The master collaboration agreement with Johns Hopkins demonstrates Mydecine's commitment to advancing psychedelic medicine by exploring multiple molecules and medicines for a variety of indications. One of the first targets is post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in veterans, emergency medical service (EMS) and front-line workers.

Currently there are no medications that have been developed to treat PTSD, and those that are prescribed to treat the symptoms can be addictive and often have unpleasant side effects. Mydecine is expecting an IND meeting with the FDA this quarter and plans to start a Phase 2a study involving veterans with PTSD during January 2022 spanning three U.S. sites, two Canadian sites and one in the Netherlands.

A Holistic Approach: MYCO-003 and Mindleap

While those trials progress, Mydecine has three other flagship drug candidates in the pipeline, including MYCO-003, a psilocybin formulation that combines a serotonin agonist with a serotonin-releasing agent. Fact is, a "bad" trip is a possibility when ingesting psilocybin, which requires supportive care from the attending physician. The risk can be exacerbated by patients with high anxiety or PTSD, which Mydecine believes it can mitigate without the need for extensive supportive care through its novel formulation. The company has recently reported positive preclinical data on MYCO-003 and filed a patent application as an anxiety-reducing product.

Many people receiving psychedelic therapy refer to the experience as spiritual, religious, mystical and the like, which gets to the breakthrough opportunity of the treatment by addressing the root cause in the brain rather than putting a Band-Aid on the surface.

Healing and meaningful change are processes that are part-and-parcel to psychedelic regimens. Mindleap Health, a unit of Mydecine, supports this journey as an inner wellness application and community that provides tools for self-discovery. Mindleap offers a comprehensive platform that introduces users to psychedelic integration, dream analysis and deepening awareness with top experts as a part of a holistic, real healing approach.

Investors Cheer as Evidence Mounts

Decades ago, a growing body of evidence highlighted the potent therapeutic effect of psychedelic compounds for hard-to-treat diseases. Some 51 years after President Richard Nixon signed the Controlled Substance Act that stymied R&D work with psychedelics, those same diseases remain pervasive and resistant to traditional therapies. While more clinical studies will lend further indubitable data, that work is gaining steam.

COMPASS Pathways Plc(NASDAQ: CMPS) is a mental health-care company dedicated to accelerating patient access to evidence-based innovation in mental health. The company is pioneering the development of a new model of psilocybin therapy, in which its proprietary formulation of synthetic psilocybin, COMP360, is administered in conjunction with psychological support. COMP360 has been designated a breakthrough therapy by the FDA for treatment-resistant depression, and COMPASS is currently conducting a phase IIb clinical trial of psilocybin therapy for TRD in 22 sites across Europe and North America.

ATAI Life Sciences N.V.(NASDAQ: ATAI)is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company aiming to transform the treatment of mental health disorders. Founded in 2018, atai is dedicated to acquiring, incubating and efficiently developing innovative therapeutics with a focus on psychedelic therapies to treat depression, anxiety, addiction, and other mental health disorders. Most recently, its DemeRx IB business announced that the first subjects have been dosed in a Phase 1/2a clinical trial of ibogaine HCl (DMX-1002) for opioid use disorder.

Cybin Inc.(NYSE American: CYBN)is focused on progressing psychedelic therapeutics by utilizing proprietary drug-discovery platforms, innovative drug-delivery systems, novel formulation approaches and treatment regimens for psychiatric disorders. In its bid to create a world-class portfolio of psychedelic molecules that can become commercially viable drug candidates for internal development or partnering, Cybin this month completed 74 in-vitro and in-vivo evaluations of its expanding portfolio of psychedelic compounds. To date, more than 50 novel compounds have been evaluated through collaborations with experienced contract research organizations.

Field Trip Health Ltd.(NASDAQ: FTRP)is the global leader in the development and delivery of psychedelic therapies. The company's Field Trip Discovery division is focused on the development of next-generation psychedelic molecules and is conducting advanced research on plant-based psychedelics; its Field Trip Health division is opening centers for psychedelic therapies across North America and Europe.

Thanks to strong investor appetite and hundreds of millions of dollars in funding, psychedelic research is accelerating and clinics making the treatment readily available are cropping up all over the world. The days of viewing psychedelics as merely amusements of counterculture are fading and, for the first time in a long time, it feels like the world is closing in on a new psychedelic-based therapy to fill gaps where traditional drug makers have failed.

For more information about Mydecine Innovations, please visit Mydecine Innovations Group.

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Breaking the Habit: Psychedelic Stigma Fades as Research Points to Critical Use in Smoking Cessation and More - PRNewswire

Brain stimulation, neurofeedback, and the promise of enlightenment now – Vox.com

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

It was a Monday morning, which was reason enough to meditate. I was anxious about the day ahead, and so, as Ive done countless times over the past few years, I settled in on my couch for a short meditation session. But something was different this morning.

Gently squeezing my forehead was a high-tech meditation headset, outfitted with sensors that would read my brain waves to tell me when I was calm and when I was, well, me. Beside me, my phone was running an app that paired over Bluetooth with the headset. It would give me audio feedback on my brains performance in real time, then score me with points and awards.

This was the Muse headband, an innovation in mindfulness that picks up on Silicon Valleys penchant for quantifying every aspect of ourselves through wearable tech the idea being that the more data you have on your brain waves, heart rate, sleep, and other bodily functions, the more you can optimize the machine that is you. But a thought nagged at me: Isnt there something self-defeating and contradictory about trying to optimize meditation by making it all about achieving success in a gamified app?

The underlying technology is definitely intriguing. Muse is an application of neurofeedback, a tool for training yourself to regulate your brain waves. Neurofeedback began gaining popularity years ago in clinical contexts, as research showed it had the potential to help people struggling with conditions like ADHD and PTSD.

Muse is one of several companies now selling neurofeedback devices with a different aim: making you a more enlightened version of yourself. At $245 a pop, its headbands are already accessible to consumers at stores like Walmart or Best Buy.

In fact, neurofeedback is just one of the newer technologies being touted as a way to catapult us into higher, more enlightened states of consciousness. Other technoboosts include brain stimulation, which uses electric currents or other means to directly target certain brain areas and change their behavior, and synthetic psychedelics, which are lab-created versions of drugs such as ayahuasca. Collectively, they form a genre that Kate Stockly and Wesley Wildman, researchers at Boston Universitys Center for Mind and Culture, call spirit tech.

Like me, the researchers started out skeptical of these technologies. But they grew fascinated as they began exploring big questions: Can we use tech to provoke experiences that will make people lastingly more compassionate and altruistic? Is an experience of enlightenment thats induced by technology authentic (and does that matter)? If we democratize spiritual insights so they become accessible faster to lots more people not just those of us who can afford to spend decades meditating in a cave somewhere can that help our species evolve?

These questions, and the shifting answers to them, hint at the strange new terrain we are wandering onto, as neuroscience, self-optimization tech, and mindfulness collide.

The different varieties of spirit tech neurofeedback, brain stimulation, and synthetic psychedelics most prominently all have the same general objective of abetting a persons search for a higher state of consciousness. But they all have their distinct ways of getting you there.

Neurofeedback devices for meditation aim to help you get into a state of calm, focused attention by tracking your brain activity and producing guiding sounds to let you know when your mind is wandering.

There are a few different ways this can work, but Ill stick to Muse for illustrations sake. You start by placing a headband on your forehead. Its built-in EEG sensors read your brain waves as you meditate. Some brain waves are associated with focused attention and others are associated with mind-wandering and stress; Muses algorithm picks them apart in real time and offers up a different cue on the phone app depending on what your mind is doing.

When your thoughts are racing, you hear loud rainstorms. Thats your cue to go, like, Oh shit! Im thinking about the grocery list again! Back to meditation! Ariel Garten, the co-founder of Muse, told me.

When your thoughts are calmer, you hear quieter weather. And when you manage to sustain a deep calm for a while, you hear the rewarding sound of birds chirping.

Its a classic Pavlovian-type reinforcement, according to Garten, meant to encourage your brain to remember the feel of this tranquil mental state and return to it over and over. Its also (for better or worse) an ego boost. When the Muse app shows you your stats at the end of a session, you might find yourself thinking: Im crushing this. I got five birds!

Some scientific research indicates that neurofeedback can modestly improve attention and subjective well-being. But its important to note that this kind of tech can, at most, help people get to an entry-level state of meditation what you might call, simply, concentration. Researchers do not claim to have figured out how to lead people into more advanced meditative states yet.

Stockly, who tried neurofeedback herself as part of her research for Spirit Tech, the book she co-wrote with Wildman, told me the technology holds promise as a way to shorten peoples meditation learning curve. I could tell when my brain was doing the right thing because I would hear the sound that was supposed to be the positive feedback, she said. She also told me neurofeedback is just the tip of the iceberg. It could be understood as a starter technology on your way to something a little bit more invasive, like brain stimulation.

If neurofeedback devices like Muse only aim to read whats happening in your brain and give you cues that reflect it, then another technique, brain stimulation, aims to write to the brain that is, to directly change what your neurons are up to.

Heres the basic idea: Different states of consciousness manifest in your brain as different patterns of electrical activity, or neurological signatures. Researchers have already figured out what some of them look like. Now, theyre figuring out how to technologically stimulate your brain into those states. Theyre experimenting with a few types of stimulation electric, magnetic, light, and ultrasound to target particular brain areas.

Shooting electricity into your skull might sound painful, but it can be very gentle. There are already a few neurostimulation devices on the market, like Zendo, which come in the form of small pads or patches that you apply to your forehead; they create a tingly sensation as they send low levels of electricity into your brain. They claim to make meditation easier and reduce stress.

The scientific evidence on their efficacy is mixed. Safety-wise, theyre not required to have FDA approval since theyre not marketed as medical devices, but theyre generally considered low-risk for short-term use given that a number of stimulation methods are already approved for clinical use in treating conditions like depression. However, we lack data on the long-term effects of using neurostimulation devices continually.

Meanwhile, some researchers are pursuing a much more ambitious goal than mere stress reduction. Theyre exploring brain stimulations potential to act as a shortcut to enlightenment.

Evan Thompson, a University of British Columbia professor who specializes in Asian philosophical traditions, notes that its inaccurate to talk about enlightenment as if its one monolithic thing. Instead, we have to talk about specific enlightened states. Enlightenment means different things to different teachers, schools, and historical periods, he said. It can mean the elimination of all craving and attachment, for example, or the dissolution of the sense of a separate self.

The latter is particularly relevant to Shinzen Young and Jay Sanguinetti, co-directors of the Sonication Enhanced Mindful Awareness (SEMA) lab at the University of Arizona. Theyve found that beaming ultrasound pulses at a certain brain area, the basal ganglia, leads to a quieting of the ego a less self-focused state of mind.

Young, a monk whos been meditating for 50 years, let his neuroscientist colleague Sanguinetti administer the ultrasound pulses on him. Afterward, he said it accelerated and deepened his ability to enter a state of equanimity and selflessness. In fact, he said it triggered one of the most significant meditations hes ever had. Twelve other advanced meditators later reported similar effects.

Of course, thats not enough to get a sense of whether its truly safe and effective, especially for long-term use. Theres still a lot more safety and efficacy research to be done before brain stimulation using ultrasound will be available outside of specialized labs.

Its not a consumer device package in Best Buy, Garten said. Its far, far, far from being that. Probably 20 or 30 more years.

In the meantime, other researchers are exploring psychedelics, which are undergoing a renaissance these days as their therapeutic potential for treating conditions like depression becomes increasingly recognized.

Many psychedelics, such as magic mushrooms and mescaline, are naturally occurring. But scientists are now busy creating synthetic versions of drugs, like pharmahuasca (synthetic ayahuasca), so the chemical components can be precisely predicted and customized. These drugs dont just read whats happening in the brain; like neurostimulation, they write to it directly.

Scientists have found that psychedelics can produce mystical experiences that lead to lasting changes in tolerance and openness. One study found that regular users of ayahuasca, for example, score higher than nonusers on measures of self-transcendence. Pharmahuasca has produced very similar effects, though research suggests some of the emotional benefits of traditional ayahuasca rituals may be lost when the drug is consumed outside its ceremonial context, perhaps because the intentions of the users are different.

Although some mental health professionals already use synthetic psychedelics in their clinical practices to treat patients, dont expect to see such substances becoming legally available for self-directed use as spirit tech in the US anytime soon. Currently, Americans who want to legally try a drug like ayahuasca (natural or synthetic) have to be members of specific religious communities such as the Native American Church, or else travel to South America. That said, Wildman and Stockly report that there is an active underground market for synthetic psychedelics like pharmahuasca.

When people first hear about technoboosts for enlightenment, theres a tendency to think that using technology to induce spiritual experiences is a totally new phenomenon and that therefore a tech-induced experience is not authentic spirituality.

Thompson says both those premises are wrong. For one thing, people have been using tech to induce altered states of consciousness for millennia. We may not be used to thinking of tools like prayer wheels, mandalas, rosaries, or rhythmic drumming in shamanic dances as spiritual technologies, but thats exactly what they are.

Plus, Thompson told me, I think authenticity is a very misleading concept.

Historically, theres no consensus, even within a single religious tradition, about how to tell a genuine spiritual epiphany from a counterfeit.

Some believe a spiritual experience must be spontaneous to be authentic. Others believe just the opposite that an authentic experience comes about only after someone spends lots of time and effort developing a practice.

As Stockly and Wildman write in Spirit Tech, Some people sense that it just cant be right that spiritual wisdom and experiences that are incredibly hard-won are just suddenly conferred on any old doofus without the exertion of effort, discipline, and commitment.

Likewise, some groups say a spiritual experience is trustworthy if it supports their preexisting, canonical beliefs, and untrustworthy if it produces heterodox beliefs. But others say an experience is authentic precisely if it transcends convention just think of how Jesus taught something new and different from the Judaism of his time.

Stockly, Wildman, and Thompson all told me they think it makes less sense to look at the causes or content of an experience than to look at its consequences. Another way to put this is: Dont ask whether an experience is authentic; ask whether its beneficial. Does it make you more cruel, haughty, and self-centered? Or more compassionate, humble, and other-focused?

A related concern about some technoboosts is that perhaps they only lead to temporary changes altered states, but not altered traits. If their consequences fade away within hours or days, how much good does that really do?

It is possible just to have experiences that are something like transitory highs, Wildman told me. But they can incentivize you to develop a continuous practice. These incredibly powerful experiences can completely change your willingness to take on something like that.

Stockly noted that technoboosts like neurofeedback and brain stimulation are not meant to be one-and-done. Instead, we should think of them as training wheels for the brain. The idea is that it really is targeting the desired part of the brain in such a way that with repeated use, it will actually change the brain, she said. It will help to create those new neural pathways.

Thompson, for his part, worries that such technoboosts might be counterproductive rather than beneficial if, for example, the way the technology mediates the experience of meditation reinforces the ego tendencies that meditation is meant to alleviate. This is his concern about all the gamification the Muse app displays, from telling you when youve achieved a streak of consecutive days to rewarding you with bird chirps when youve stayed calm long enough.

It builds up a sense of a performative, successful self, he said. Like, Oh look, Ive meditated a hundred days in a row now! Its not only distraction, it actually reinforces precisely the thing that youre trying to get beyond.

Garten told me that this was a design question she struggled with a lot. But ultimately, she thinks you need some gamification to motivate the user to keep coming back, at least at first. And even though the birds may be distracting and ego-inflating initially, she thinks they can gradually teach the user an important lesson: equanimity. Get too excited about the appearance of a bird, and it vanishes immediately, because your excited brain state means youve lost the calm that hastened its arrival. In this way, you learn not to get overly invested in any outcome.

That hasnt been my experience with Muse yet. So far, for me, the birds feel like theyre harming rather than helping my practice. But Ive been meditating for about five years. Conceivably, for a beginner, the motivational benefits of gamification, together with Muses ability to show the novice meditator when theyre doing it right, could outweigh the costs.

Theres a less obvious risk we need to bear in mind. Instead of only asking, What if the tech doesnt work as advertised? we also need to ask, What if it does?

On the one hand, that would be exciting. In 2005, the Dalai Lama was asked what he thinks about the possibility of tech leading to spiritual awakenings. He said: If it was possible to become free of negative emotions by a riskless implementation of an electrode without impairing intelligence and the critical mind I would be the first patient.

But most of us do not have the Dalai Lamas training. Sudden, intense epiphanies that powerful new technology like brain stimulation aims to provoke may not have the positive effects you might expect. Normally, people build up to those epiphanies over years of practice or on long meditation retreats; the gradualness of the learning curve and the presence of mentors can help a person integrate an epiphany into their self-understanding. Spirit tech wants to offer a shortcut to gin up epiphanies on-demand and la carte and the effects could be jarring.

As Sanguinetti says in Spirit Tech, If youre a father and you have two children, what does it mean to change you [with brain stimulation]? Because you still need to be able to take care of your children and be motivated to do that. So we dont want to make you happy-detached, we want to make you happy-embodied and a happy, better human being in your society and the specific sociocultural context that youre in.

In traditional spiritual communities, the spirit tech isnt just the meditation you do or the mushroom you ingest. There are mentors and traditions that shape how you make meaning out of a peak experience and integrate it into your humdrum life these are technology, too. Similarly, we may need a cadre of trained people who can guide us through the process of implementing powerful new tools like brain stimulation.

Absent such a framework, Thompson remains unconvinced of the potential of such technologies.

It strikes me as more consumerist, capitalist appropriation of meditation as a kind of narcissistic personal experience, he said. Its about my enlightenment attained through techno-enhancement. Call that enlightenment if you want, but enlightenment in a richer sense is about a profound transformation not of yourself just as an isolated individual but of your relationship to other human beings in the world. Its social.

Reporting for this article was supported by Public Theologies of Technology and Presence, a journalism and research initiative based at the Institute of Buddhist Studies and funded by the Henry Luce Foundation.

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Brain stimulation, neurofeedback, and the promise of enlightenment now - Vox.com

Someone is selling psychedelics with a Squid Game poster in Vancouver | News – Daily Hive

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

As some local businesses lean into Squid Game business cards to advertise their products, at least one online retailer of psychedelics is jumping on the trend.

Daily Hive spotted a Squid Game-themed poster at West Cordova Street and Cambie Street Wednesday morning, just outside the Woodwards building.

The poster links to Area 51, an online store that sells mushrooms, LSD, DMT, MDMA, and ketamine. Daily Hive has reached out to the store for comment.

Daily Hive

The shop only accepts Bitcoin because, according to its website, PayPal closed its account. It also says its been selling these products online for over a year.

The gory Korean drama quickly became Netflixs most-viewed show ever this month. Other businesses, including a local radio show and a workout supplement shop, have placed Squid Game-style business cards on vehicles around the Lower Mainland.

While those businesses were selling legal wares, this shop sells controlled substances although, according to its website, it has as close to a perfect record as possible in the industry.

Several other psychedelic shops have been putting scannable QR code posters up around downtown recently, but their graphics tend to be mushroom-themed rather than reminding potential customers of the chilling show.

One thing is for certain nobody wants their trip to turn out like Squid Game.

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Someone is selling psychedelics with a Squid Game poster in Vancouver | News - Daily Hive

Anderson Cooper freaked out by expert’s shocking claim we’re the last generation of humans – LGBTQ Nation

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

Anderson Cooper has been raising a lot of eyebrows lately.Photo: Charles Sykes/AP

Out television host Anderson Coopers latest interview for 60 Minutes left him freaked out and terrified.

Coopers guest Israeli historian Yuval Noah Harari who wrote the bestselling book Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind has boldly claimed that ours will be one of the last generations of homo sapiens.

Related:Rachel Maddow reveals shocking new evidence about MAGA riot on air to stunned Congressman

Within a century or two, Earth will be dominated by entities that are more different from us than we are different from chimpanzees, Cooper quoted from Hararis latest book.

Yes, Harari replied.

What the hell does that mean? Cooper asked. That freaked me out!

You know, well soon have the power to re-engineer our bodies and brains, Harari replied, whether it is with genetic engineering or by directly connecting brains to computers, or by creating completely non-organic entities.

If true, that creates a whole other species, Cooper gasped.

This is something that is way beyond just another species, Harari said.

Artificial intelligence could solve problems faster while biological advancements could give the hybrids a competitive advantage in areas like work, sports, and science. But Harariwarns that advancing technology will spur even more inequality in humanity as the wealthy take advantage of new technology faster than others. Will the artificial intelligence have a form of morality or feel responsibility for decisions, he wonders.

For the first time it will be real biological inequality, he said. If the new technologies are available only to the rich, or only to people from a certain country, then homo sapiens will split into different biological castes.

On his CNN show earlier this month,Cooper said Harvard political scientists Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatts description of the Republican attacks on democracy this past year are terrifying.

Levitsky and Ziblatt wroteWhen Democracies Dieafter the 2016 elections, where they focused on how mutual toleration in political systems that is, having enough respect for ones political opposition to see their power as legitimate even if one doesnt agree with them is eroded as countries descend into authoritarianism.

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Anderson Cooper freaked out by expert's shocking claim we're the last generation of humans - LGBTQ Nation

What Philosophers Believe: Results from the 2020 PhilPapers Survey – Daily Nous

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

Results from the 2020 PhilPapers survey, with responses from nearly 1,800 philosophers (mainly from North America, Europe, and Australasia), to questions on a variety of philosophical subjects and problems, have now been published.

In their commentary on the survey, David Bourget (Western University) and David Chalmers (NYU) explain the its value:

Surveys like this can play at least three roles within philosophy. First, todays sociology is tomorrows history, and these resultsmay be of some use to future historians of philosophy. Second, philosophers often appeal to sociological claims about the distributions of views among philosophers, for example in justifying which views should be taken seriously, and it makes sense for these claims to be well-grounded. Third, if philosophy has any tendency to converge to the truth, then philosophers views might provide some guidance about the truth of philosophical views. It is not clear whether philosophy tends to converge to the truth, so we dont make the third claim about guidance, but surveys can clearly play the first two roles in philosophical practice.

The survey asked 40 main questions and 60 additional questions.

Here are the results of the main questions:

Bourget and Chalmers note that the results reported above cannot be directly compared to the 2009 results, owing to the change in the population surveyed. Still, they noted some of the largest shifts in responses among those who took both surveys. These include swings:

See their write-up for a more detailed longitudinal analysis of philosophers views.

Here are a few results from the newly added questions:

Bourget and Chalmers also include information about which answers to different questions are correlated. For the complete set of results and additional analysis, go here.

Discussion welcome.

Note:The post was edited to make clear that the 2020 data cannot be directly compared to the 2009 data, owing to changes in the survey population.

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What Philosophers Believe: Results from the 2020 PhilPapers Survey - Daily Nous

Lung Cancer Unresponsive to Immunotherapy and a Potential Solution – Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

Patients with nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC), the most common lung cancer in humans, are frequently treated with an immunotherapy called immune checkpoint blockade (ICB). This therapy induces a population of tumor-infiltrating T cells called CD8 positive T cells to secrete interferon gamma which in turn induces the expression of programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1).

PD-L1 expression in the tumor microenvironment indicates the T cells are poised to kill tumor cells and patients with PD-L1 positive T-cell infiltrated tumors are most likely to respond to ICB. However, only about 35% of NSCLC patients respond to ICB therapy. Not all CD8 positive T cells in lung tumors express PD-L1 and respond to ICB and little is known about the mechanisms that govern ICB resistance in T cells within NSCLC.

In a new study published in Science Immunologytitled, Lack of CD8+ T cell effector differentiation during priming mediates checkpoint blockade resistance in nonsmall cell lung cancer, Stefani Spranger, PhD, professor at the MIT department of biology, and her colleagues uncover what causes some T cells in animal models of NSCLC to fail to respond to ICB, offering a potential way around it.

Jeffrey Bluestone, PhD, professor of metabolism and endocrinology at the University of California, San Francisco, who was not involved with the paper said, The study provides a potential opportunity to rescue immunity in the NSCLC non-responder patients with appropriate combination therapies.

It has been generally held that the continuous fight against tumor cells exhausts T cells which causes them to stop working. The rationale behind ICB therapy, therefore, has been to reinvigorate the exhausted T cells that pass into the tumors microenvironment.

However, experiments conducted by Brendan Horton, PhD, postdoctoral fellow in Sprangers lab, showed some ICB-resistant T cells stop working before they even enter the tumor, indicating exhaustion is not the cause behind their dysfunction.

Instead, the authors found that gene expression in these T cells is altered during their activation in lymph nodes which causes them to stop functioning. Once activated, T cells specialize into different subtypes with distinct functions that can be detected by specific genetic signatures.

According to Spranger, the idea that the dysfunctional state leads to ICB resistance arises before T cells enter the tumor is quite novel.

We show that this state is actually a preset condition, and that the T cells are already nonresponsive to therapy before they enter the tumor, she said. As a result, she explained, ICB therapies that work by reinvigorating exhausted T cells within the tumor are less likely to be effective. This suggests that combining ICB with other forms of immunotherapy that target T cells differently might be a more effective approach to help the immune system combat this subset of lung cancer.

To determine why some tumors are resistant to ICB, the team studied T cells in mouse models of NSCLC. They sequenced mRNA from responsive and non-responsive T cells and used a technique called Seq-Well, developed in the lab of fellow Koch Institute member, J. Christopher Love, PhD, professor of chemical engineering, and a co-author of the study. The technique allows rapid gene expression profiling of single cells. T cells responsive and nonresponsive to ICB show different gene expression patterns at specialized functional states, the single-cell sequencing analysis showed. For instance, nonresponsive T cells express low levels of some cytokinesproteins that control immunity.

Armed with the differential gene expression pattern, the team sought to convert ICB-resistant T cells into ICB-responsive T cells. The researchers treated lung tumors in mouse models with cytokines IL-2 and IL-12. This led the previously nonresponsive T cells to fight cancer cells in the mouse NSCLC.

This is potentially something that could be translated into a therapeutic that could increase the therapy response rate in non-small cell lung cancer, Horton said.

Spranger and Horton suspect cytokine therapy could be used in combination with ICB, although current clinical practices avoid cytokine treatments due to potential adverse side effects, including a condition called cytokine storm that can be fatal.

Spranger feels this work will help researchers develop more innovative cancer therapies, refocusing their efforts from reversing T-cell exhaustion to earlier states of T-cell specialization.

If T cells are rendered dysfunctional early on, ICB is not going to be effective, and we need to think outside the box, she said. Theres more evidence, and other labs are now showing this as well, that the functional state of the T cell actually matters quite substantially in cancer therapies.

To Spranger, this means that cytokine therapy might be a therapeutic avenue for NSCLC patients beyond ICB.

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Lung Cancer Unresponsive to Immunotherapy and a Potential Solution - Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News

Genetic Goldmine Uncovered for Plant Survival in One of the Harshest Environments on Earth – SciTechDaily

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

Evolutionary genomics approach identifies genes that enable plants to live in the Atacama Desert, offering clues for engineering more resilient crops to face climate change.

An international team of researchers has identified genes associated with plant survival in one of the harshest environments on Earth: the Atacama Desert in Chile. Their findings, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), may help scientists breed resilient crops that can thrive in increasingly drier climates.

In an era of accelerated climate change, it is critical to uncover the genetic basis to improve crop production and resilience under dry and nutrient-poor conditions, said Gloria Coruzzi, Carroll & Milton Petrie Professor in the New York University (NYU) Department of Biology and Center for Genomics and Systems Biology, who co-led the study with Rodrigo Gutirrez.

The Chilean research team established an unparalleled natural laboratory in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile, one of the driest and harshest environments on Earth. Credit: Melissa Aguilar

The study was an international collaboration among botanists, microbiologists, ecologists, evolutionary and genomic scientists. This unique combination of expertise enabled the team to identify the plants, associated microbes, and genes that enable the Atacama plants to adapt to and flourish in extreme desert conditions, which could ultimately help to enhance crop growth and reduce food insecurity.

Our study of plants in the Atacama Desert is directly relevant to regions around the world that are becoming increasingly arid, with factors such as drought, extreme temperatures, and salt in water and soil posing a significant threat to global food production, said Gutirrez, professor in the Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology at Pontificia Universidad Catlica de Chile.

The Atacama Desert in northern Chile, sandwiched between the Pacific Ocean and Andes Mountains, is the driest place on the planet (excluding the poles). Yet dozens of plants grow there, including grasses, annuals, and perennial shrubs. In addition to limited water, plants in the Atacama must cope with high altitude, low availability of nutrients in the soil, and extremely high radiation from sunlight.

Gabriela Carrasco, an undergraduate researcher at the time, is identifying, labeling, collecting, and freezing plant samples in the Atacama Desert. These samples then traveled 1,000 miles, kept under dry ice to be processed for RNA extractions in Rodrigo Gutirrezs lab in Santiago de Chile. The species Carrasco is collecting here are Jarava frigida and Lupinus oreophilus. Credit: Melissa Aguilar

The Chilean research team established an unparalleled natural laboratory in the Atacama Desert over a 10-year period, in which they collected and characterized the climate, soil, and plants at 22 sites in different vegetational areas and elevations (every 100 meters of altitude) along the Talabre-Leja Transect. Measuring a variety of factors, they recorded temperatures that fluctuated more than 50 degrees from day to night, very high radiation levels, soil that was largely sand and lacked nutrients, and minimal rain, with most annual rain falling over a few days.

The Chilean researchers brought the plant and soil samplespreserved in liquid nitrogen1,000 miles back to the lab to sequence the genes expressed in the 32 dominant plant species in the Atacama and assess the plant-associated soil microbes based on DNA sequences. They found that some plant species developed growth-promoting bacteria near their roots, an adaptive strategy to optimize the intake of nitrogena nutrient critical for plant growthin the nitrogen-poor soils of the Atacama.

To identify the genes whose protein sequences were adapted in the Atacama species, the researchers at NYU next conducted an analysis using an approach called phylogenomics, which aims to reconstruct evolutionary history using genomic data. In consultation with colleagues at the New York Botanical Garden, they compared the genomes of the 32 Atacama plants with 32 non-adapted but genetically similar sister species, as well as several model species.

The goal was to use this evolutionary tree based on genome sequences to identify the changes in amino acid sequences encoded in the genes that support the evolution of the Atacama plant adaptation to desert conditions, said Coruzzi.

This computationally intense genomic analysis involved comparing 1,686,950 protein sequences across more than 70 species. We used the resulting super-matrix of 8,599,764 amino acids for phylogenomic reconstruction of the evolutionary history of the Atacama species, said Gil Eshel, who conducted this analysis using the High Performance Computing Cluster at NYU.

The study identified 265 candidate genes whose protein sequence changes were selected by evolutionary forces across multiple Atacama species. These adaptive mutations occurred in genes that could underlie plant adaptation to the desert conditions, including genes involved in response to light and photosynthesis, which may enable plants to adapt to the extreme high-light radiation in the Atacama. Similarly, the researchers uncovered genes involved in the regulation of stress response, salt, detoxification, and metal ions, which could be related to the adaptation of these Atacama plants to their stressful, nutrient-poor environment.

The majority of scientific knowledge of plant stress responses and tolerance has been generated through traditional lab-based studies using a few model species. While beneficial, such molecular studies likely miss the ecological context in which plants have evolved.

By studying an ecosystem in its natural environment, we were able to identify adaptive genes and molecular processes among species facing a common harsh environment, said Viviana Araus of the Pontificia Universidad Catlica de Chile in Gutierrez lab and a former postdoctoral associate at NYUs Center for Genomics and Systems Biology.

Most of the plant species we characterized in this research have not been studied before. As some Atacama plants are closely related to staple crops, including grains, legumes, and potatoes, the candidate genes we identified represent a genetic goldmine to engineer more resilient crops, a necessity given the increased desertification of our planet, said Gutirrez.

In addition to Gutirrez and Araus, their collaborators in Chile included Claudio Latorre of the Pontificia Universidad Catlica de Chile and Mauricio Gonzlez of the Universidad de Chile. Coruzzi and Eshel at NYU worked on the phylogenomic pipeline and analysis with collaborators in the U.S., including Kranthi Varala of Purdue University, Dennis Stevenson of the New York Botanical Garden, Rob DeSalle of the American Museum of Natural History, as well as members of their research teams.

Reference: Plant ecological genomics at the limits of life in the Atacama Desert 1 November 2021, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2101177118

This work was supported by Fondo de Desarrollo de Areas Prioritarias (FONDAP) Center for Genome Regulation (15090007) in Chile, and in the U.S. by the Zegar Family Foundation (A160051), and by a Department of Energy Biological and Environmental Research grant (DE-SC0014377).

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Empowering algae to shape the future of bioenergy – ASU Now

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

Humble microalgae may seem minor at first glance, but when optimally farmed and converted into biofuels, the potential of this renewable resource to combat climate change is anything but insignificant.

Through the extraction of lipids, they can be converted into biofuels. And, like plants, photosynthesizing algae absorb carbon dioxide, or CO2, and release oxygen into the atmosphere. But algae can do that at much faster rates and higher efficiencies than plants, and they dont need arable land or even fresh water to grow, which has sustainability scientists and engineers intrigued. Taylor Weiss (left), co-PI and assistant professor of environmental and resource management at the Polytechnic School, and Duane Barbano (right), a biological design PhD candidate in the School for Engineering of Matter, Transport and Energy, are farming algae in a pond at the Arizona Center for Algae Technology and Innovation on ASU's Polytechnic campus. Photo by Deanna Dent/ASU Download Full Image

On a small scale, converting algae into biofuels can be fairly straightforward. However, for an algal system to be sustainable, scalable and economical, it must be able to deliver and utilize CO2 efficiently.

A new U.S. Department of Energy grant awarded to the Arizona Center for Algae Technology and Innovation, or AzCATI, will investigate novel methods of CO2 sourcing, delivery and absorption with the goal of promoting algae resiliency and pathways to large-scale biomass production and eventual conversion into low-carbon biofuels an alternative to petroleum.

This initiative is especially important in reducing the carbon footprint of the transportation sector specifically airplanes and ships which accounts for approximately 30% of total U.S. energy consumption and generates the largest share of the countrys greenhouse gas emissions.

AzCATI, located on 4 acres of Arizona State Universitys Polytechnic campus, is home to one of the countrys largest and most comprehensive algae test-bed facilities. In partnership with researchers from all over the world, AzCATI has been investigating algal technology since its establishment in 2010 and has since attracted more than $45 million in federal, state and private funding.

AzCATI will receive $3.2 million for this DOE-supported effort out of a total $34 million in funding for 11 industry- and university-led projects to support the high-impact research and development of biofuels, biopower and bioproducts.

John McGowen, a portfolio manager for research in the Knowledge Enterprise at ASU, will lead the project. He says that about 80% of algae funding at ASU is from the DOE.

We are essentially a national test bed, the longest-running, continually funded outdoor cultivation test bed in the country that isnt commercial. With our experienced faculty, staff, upwards of 30 students and unique testing abilities, we are set up to test new technologies, break them and move on, or improve them and make breakthroughs.

McGowen was one of AzCATIs first researchers and has witnessed the evolution of algae research over the past 11 years.

He explains that the high levels of oils and carbohydrates and proteins created by algae are refined and used as various forms of biofuels and valuable bioproducts.

McGowen says its important to know that the high-density algae needed to create biofuel cant be grown naturally in the environment because of current CO2 levels in the atmosphere, and that they need an additional source delivered directly to them to be viable for this purpose.

A trifecta of research objectives will define AzCATIs three-year DOE project, titled, Direct Air Capture Integration With Algae Carbon Biocatalysis. Researchers at AzCATI will model a novel technology called passive-direct air capture, or PDAC, developed by Klaus Lackner, a professor at the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, one of the seven Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at ASU.

Coinciding research entails precisely delivering the CO2 product derived from PDAC to the algae for optimal absorption and low product loss, followed by improving the algaes ability to assimilate CO2 for more resilient and robust ponds.

The goal of PDAC is to offer a sustainable and efficient supply of self-sourced CO2 from the atmosphere versus conventionally purchasing costly CO2 from the merchant market. It also may help in shifting the paradigm on the cost of CO2, McGowen says. This method of CO2 sourcing would remove the necessity for algae to be co-located near a point source emitter, such as a power plant or a CO2 pipeline, meaning they could potentially grow anywhere at scale an essential step in large-scale biofuel production.

The collaboration of key partners will make this concept a reality. Carbon Collect Limited, which has licensed technology developed by Lackner and the Center for Negative Carbon Emissions at ASU, has commercialized PDAC through the development of MechanicalTrees, which according to their website are a thousand times more efficient than natural trees at removing CO2 from the air.

AzCATI will leverage Carbon Collects installation in Tempe, Arizona, and use the CO2 generated from their MechanicalTrees. It will be transported in truckloads to AzCATI and will serve as the main CO2 source for their research, meaning there will be two wholly completed unique test-bed facilities at ASU directly interacting with each other, says Taylor Weiss, co-PI and assistant professor of environmental and resource management at The Polytechnic School.

In this case, the MechanicalTrees arent in close proximity to the algae ponds at AzCATI, requiring the need for CO2 transportation. However, in theory, strategically placing a cluster of MechanicalTrees on an algae crop would offer a continuous and unlimited source of CO2, achieving a self-sustaining crop wherever it makes sense to grow it, McGowen says.

The most promising locations possessing both the water resources and ideal climate for high-productivity algae cultivation are not near pipeline infrastructure, nor do they have the available land, he says. This is where the need for PDAC technology becomes apparent.

Weiss says that even with a sustainably sourced supply of CO2 through PDAC, there remain additional challenges in achieving high productivity, including how efficiently you can deliver that CO2 into the culture and how efficiently the algae can actually convert that CO2 into the most ideal form, in particular for biofuels.

Additional research partners the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, or NREL, and Burge Environmentalwill assist in taking on these challenges. They will offer expertise in innovative CO2 delivery and biocatalysis or supporting the CO2 uptake within algae cells, as well as providing support in genetically engineering algae to give them the ability to assimilate CO2 to improve the microbial ecology within a pond to enable robust outdoor cultivation.

Weiss believes that NRELs expertise will not only improve the efficiency of CO2 dissolution into the culture once it has been captured by PDAC, but will also leverage years of experience building a genetic engineering toolkit to enhance the rate of CO2 uptake by the algae cells.

McGowen and Weiss say that using algae for atmospheric CO2 mitigation to combat climate change is a promising pathway. They also think that algae are only part of the toolbox when it comes to decarbonizing the atmosphere, and they hope to see other technologies and innovations work in tandem with algae to make significant breakthroughs.

This investigation is about redirecting the CO2 within the cell into different forms of more valuable carbon products, while eliminating environmental threats to the algae that contribute to lower output, Weiss says. We look forward to putting this technology into action and empowering algae to reach their full potential.

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Empowering algae to shape the future of bioenergy - ASU Now

Engineers devise a way to selectively turn on RNA therapies in human cells – MIT News

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

Researchers at MIT and Harvard University have designed a way to selectively turn on gene therapies in target cells, including human cells. Their technology can detect specific messenger RNA sequences in cells, and that detection then triggers production of a specific protein from a transgene, or artificial gene.

Because transgenes can have negative and even dangerous effects when expressed in the wrong cells, the researchers wanted to find a way to reduce off-target effects from gene therapies. One way of distinguishing different types of cells is by reading the RNA sequences inside them, which differ from tissue to tissue.

By finding a way to produce transgene only after reading specific RNA sequences inside cells, the researchers developed a technology that could fine-tune gene therapies in applications ranging from regenerative medicine to cancer treatment. For example, researchers could potentially create new therapies to destroy tumors by designing their system to identify cancer cells and produce a toxic protein just inside those cells, killing them in the process.

This brings new control circuitry to the emerging field of RNA therapeutics, opening up the next generation of RNA therapeutics that could be designed to only turn on in a cell-specific or tissue-specific way, says James Collins, the Termeer Professor of Medical Engineering and Science in MITs Institute for Medical Engineering and Science (IMES) and Department of Biological Engineering and the senior author of the study.

This highly targeted approach, which is based on a genetic element used by viruses to control gene translation in host cells, could help to avoid some of the side effects of therapies that affect the entire body, the researchers say.

Evan Zhao, a research fellow at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University, and Angelo Mao, an MIT postdoc and technology fellow at the Wyss Institute, are the lead authors of the study, which appears today in Nature Biotechnology.

RNA detection

Messenger RNA (mRNA) molecules are sequences of RNA that encode the instructions for building a particular protein. Several years ago, Collins and his colleagues developed a way to use RNA detection as a trigger to stimulate cells to produce a specific protein in bacterial cells. This system works by introducing an RNA molecule called a toehold, which binds to the ribosome-binding site of an mRNA molecule that codes for a specific protein. (The ribosome is where proteins are assembled based on mRNA instructions.) This binding prevents the mRNA from being translated into protein, because it cant attach to a ribosome.

The RNA toehold also contains a sequence that can bind to a different mRNA sequence that serves as a trigger. If this target mRNA sequence is detected, the toehold releases its grip, and the mRNA that had been blocked is translated into protein. This mRNA can encode any gene, such as a fluorescent reporter molecule. That fluorescent signal gives researchers a way to visualize whether the target mRNA sequence was detected.

In the new study, the researchers set out to try to create a similar system that could be used in eukaryotic (non-bacterial) cells, including human cells.

Because gene translation is more complex in eukaryotic cells, the genetic components that they used in bacteria couldnt be imported into human cells. Instead, the researchers took advantage of a system that viruses use to hijack eukaryotic cells to translate their own viral genes. This system consists of RNA molecules called internal ribosome entry sites (IRES), which can recruit ribosomes and initiate translation of RNA into proteins.

These are complicated folds of RNA that viruses have developed to hijack ribosomes because viruses need to find some way to express protein, Zhao says.

The researchers started with naturally occurring IRES from different types of viruses and engineered them to include a sequence that binds to a trigger mRNA. When the engineered IRES is inserted into a human cell in front of an output transgene, it blocks translation of that gene unless the trigger mRNA is detected inside the cell. The trigger causes the IRES to recover and allows the gene to be translated into protein.

Targeted therapeutics

The researchers used this technique to develop toeholds that could detect a variety of different triggers inside human and yeast cells. First, they showed that they could detect mRNA encoding viral genes from Zika virus and the SARS-CoV-2 virus. One possible application for this could be designing T cells that detect and respond to viral mRNA during infection, the researchers say.

They also designed toehold molecules that can detect mRNA for proteins that are naturally produced in human cells, which could help to reveal cell states such as stress. As an example, they showed they could detect expression of heat shock proteins, which cells make when they are exposed to high temperatures.

Lastly, the researchers showed that they could identify cancer cells by engineering toeholds that detect mRNA for tyrosinase, an enzyme that produces excessive melanin in melanoma cells. This kind of targeting could enable researchers to develop therapies that trigger production of a protein that initiates cell death when cancerous proteins are detected in a cell.

The idea is that you would be able to target any unique RNA signature and deliver a therapeutic, Mao says. This could be a way of limiting expression of the biomolecule to your target cells or tissue.

The new technique represents a conceptual quantum leap in controlling and programming mammalian cell behavior, says Martin Fussenegger, a professor of biotechnology and bioengineering at ETH Zurich, who was not involved in the research. This novel technology sets new standards by which human cells could be treated to sense and react to viruses such as Zika and SARS-CoV-2.

All of the studies done in this paper were performed in cells grown in a lab dish. The researchers are now working on delivery strategies that would allow the RNA components of the system to reach target cells in animal models.

The research was funded by BASF, the National Institutes of Health, an American Gastroenterological Association Takeda Pharmaceuticals Research Scholar Award in Inflammatory Bowel Disease, and the Schmidt Science Fellows program.

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Engineers devise a way to selectively turn on RNA therapies in human cells - MIT News

A major research project to advance regenerative therapy for epidermolysis bullosa (EB) using transgenic stem cells – PR Web

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

Dr. Green dedicated his career to furthering our understanding of skin regeneration and improving the outcomes for patients, Dr. Morgan said. I am honored not only to build on his work in helping improve the lives of patients, but to do so together with Shriners Hospitals for Children.

BOSTON (PRWEB) November 01, 2021

Shriners Childrens is pleased to announce that a cutting-edge gene and stem cell therapy research program to cure the rare skin blistering disorder is to be supported by the Howard Green Center for Childrens Skin Health & Research at Shriners Hospitals for Children Boston.

The lead scientist is Dr. Jeffrey Morgan who has proven track record of successful innovation and leadership skills. Dr. Morgan will guide this program as it pursues its goal of improving the outcomes and lives of patients with burns, skin disorders and dermatological conditions. The expert co-investigators on the research project are Robert Sheridan M.D., Mehmet Toner Ph.D., and Martin Yarmush M.D., Ph.D., all at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Harvard Medical School (HMS) and Shriners Childrens Boston.

Dr. Morgan has extensive experience in genetically engineering skin to treat various genetic disorders or to deliver local wound healing factors. His interdisciplinary research has produced 110 publications in high-impact, peer-reviewed scientific journals. Working in translation and commercialization of technologies, Dr. Morgan is an inventor on thirteen issued patents and was elected a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors. Innovations developed in his laboratories are distributed worldwide. Dr. Morgan has served in a number of leadership positions in academia as well as start-up companies.

Dr. Morgan trained at Massachusetts Institute of technology with Howard Green, M.D. Dr. Green was the first to grow skin grafts using a patients own cells, one of the earliest examples of stem cell therapy. The first grafts from cultured skin were used to treat two patients with life threatening burns at Shriners Hospitals for Children Boston in the early 1980s, cementing the impact of Dr. Greens discovery as well as his bond with Shriners Hospitals for Children.

Dr. Morgans appointment as principal investigator will help the Howard Green Center for Childrens Skin Health & Research take the next step in caring for patients with devastating skin injuries and conditions, said Jerry G. Gantt, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Shriners Hospitals for Children. Dr. Morgans leadership in the field and longtime connection with Dr. Howard Green make him a natural choice to lead the research project, and we are honored to have him as an important part of our Shriners Childrens family.

About the Howard Green Center for Childrens Skin Health & Research at Shriners Childrens BostonFounded in 2016, the Howard Green Center for Childrens Skin Health and Research at Shriners Hospitals for Children Boston is a first-of-its kind center dedicated to advancing the field of regenerative medicine. The mission is to engage in translational research projects that work hand-in-hand with clinical practice to move regenerative medicine along the discovery continuum to bring new treatments to children more quickly. The ultimate goal is to further improve the outcomes and lives of patients with burns, skin disorders and dermatological conditions by providing world-class care regardless of the families ability to pay.

The Center is the vision of Dr. Green and his family. By making a generous and transformational gift to Shriners Hospitals for Children Boston, Mrs. Rosine Kauffmann Green ensured her late husbands work would continue on and help children in Boston and around the world.

About Shriners Childrens Shriners Childrens is changing lives every day through innovative pediatric specialty care, world-class research and outstanding medical education. Our health care system provides care for children with orthopedic conditions, burns, spinal cord injuries, and cleft lip and palate. All care and services are provided regardless of the families ability to pay. Since opening its first location in 1922, the health care system has treated more than 1.5 million children. To learn more, please visit shrinershospitalsforchildren.org.Media Contact:Mel Bower, Shriners Hospitals for Children813-281-8643, mbower@shrinenet.org

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A major research project to advance regenerative therapy for epidermolysis bullosa (EB) using transgenic stem cells - PR Web

A shortage of healthful omega-3 fatty acid from fish looms as the global climate heats up. Here is a plant-based biotechnology solution – Genetic…

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

Consumption of fish and other seafood has played a pivotal role in human history as a nourishing protein. This warrants a reminder: global demand for healthy protein such as omega-3 oil reflects one of the many challenges around ensuring global food security. Research suggeststhat because of global warming, by 2100, 96 percent of the global population may not have sufficient access to a DHA, the naturally occurring essentialbrain-buildingomega-3 fatty acid. The researchers estimate a global loss of ~10-58 percent of the worlds DHA in the next 80 years.

Innovation is needed to support natural fisheries while also encouraging sustainable production of farmed fish.

Overfishing has emerged as a major dilemma in Earths vast oceans. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, more than 90 percent of the worlds fisheries are fully exploited, overexploited or depleted. In addition, changing weather patterns and ocean temperatures are affecting ocean life. This includes the sardine shortage along the South Africa coast, as a November 2020 study from South African Journal of Science shows that changing weather patterns caused by the climate crisis may threaten the sardine run. If sardines are migrating later in the year, this could cause food shortages for sharks and other species that feed on them.

Omega-3 oil, including the fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), are essential to the human diet and have been shown to reduce inflammation and certain risks of chronic disease.DHA is a key component of cell membranes and is critical for brain function. It helps regulate cell survival, inflammation, and neuroprotection, and makes up 10 percent of the mammalian brains fatty acids. DHA is also thought to help develop the central nervous system and retina.New researchsays DHA and other types of omega-3s may help people suffering from depression, if taken alongside antidepressants. DHA is especially helpful for fetuses, babies, and young children for developing healthy brain and eyes.

But humans cant produce enough DHA on their own. To reach therecommended dose 1.1 g for adult women and 1.6 g for adult males daily they either have to eat DHA-rich foods like fish and seafood once or twice a week, or take dietary supplements.Omega-3 oils are present only in certain cold-water fatty fish species including sardines, mackerel, and salmon.

Ethical and environmental concerns have arisen over the sustainable sourcing of omega-3 oils from naturally harvested fish for use in commercial fish meal used in farmed fish, including salmon. A recent survey, detailing the collective opinion of 30 global seafood procurement executives from Spheric Research on behalf of Global Seafood Alliance, found that retail demand for the most popular seafood species such as salmon and shrimp surged by double digits and will continue to rise this year.

Also, according to a recent Nielsen study, seafood consumption escalated by more than 30 percent in retail channels in North America in 2020, greater than any other type of animal protein including beef and chicken. In this study, retail procurement executives who participated found that salmon and shrimp demand rose as much by 30 percent in North America and 20 percent in Europe.

Innovation is needed to support natural fisheries while also encouraging the sustainable production of farmed fish. Plant-based alternatives for fish oil, including an alternative for omega-3 fish oil, are in high demand, especially as the public becomes more educated about the food they consume, and the impact it may have on their health. Therefore, technology is being developed using Camelina plants as a platform to produce oils that closely mimic omega-3 fish oil containing EPA and DHA, without the fish.

The team at Yield10 Biosciences is participating in a global research effort to utilize the oil seed plant Camelina sativa as a platform to produce omega-3 oil representing a sustainable, land-based solution to supplying this heart healthy oil for use in commercial fish feed, especially for farmed salmon. Last year Yield10 formed a collaboration with Rothamsted Research to develop biotechnology for producing omega-3 in Camelina as a potential fish oil alternative.As part of the agreement, Yield10 has an exclusive two-year option to sign a global license agreement to develop and commercialize this plant-based omega-3 technology.

Rothamsteds Flagship leader, Johnathan A. Napier , is the head author of a paper published this year in Nature describing how AgTech innovation could help aquaculture become greener. The paper explains how aquaculture can deliver fish protein to a growing world population while staying within planetary boundaries of environmental sustainability. It also features research on how due to overfishing and the decline of marine diversity, only aquaculture has the potential to meet the needs of 10 billion people in 2050, while remaining within said planetary boundaries. Therefore, using omega-3 oil produced in Camelina represents an exciting alternative to combat the overfishing associated with the harvest of natural fish to produce omega-3 oil, and by supplying sufficient omega-3 as a nutrient for farmed fish as a healthy protein for human nutrition.

Over the last decade, the Rothamsted team led by Napier has successfully produced DHA/EPA omega-3 fish oils in Camelina seed. The Rothamsted team has used recombinant genetic engineering techniques to reproduce the omega-3 biosynthesis pathway from algae to Camelina. This approach worked very well in achieving high levels of both EPA and DHA in the seed oil of Camelina. The Rothamsted team has demonstrated that the omega-3 oil produced in Camelina already matches (or exceeds) the DHA/EPA levels found in northern hemisphere fish oil (such as mackerel or cod liver) and is working on technology to raise the omega-3 levels to match southern hemisphere fish oil. The Rothamsted team also carried out multi-year field trials and multiple feeding studies showing the equivalence of the DHA and EPA Camelina oil to natural omega-3 fish oil in feeding studies of salmon, trout and sea bass.

Because it is readily genetically engineered, has a fast growth cycle, and demonstrates robust agronomics, Camelina is an ideal crop to produce this fish oil substitute. There are also benefits to avoiding production in commodity crops such as canola and soy, since Camelina seeds are easier to segregate from the major seed export crops during production, harvesting and processing.

We recognized fairly early that the work done at Rothamsted had not only been successful scientifically but was demonstrated from a nutritional point of view to essentially be a substitute for fish oil, both in aquafeed diets for salmon farming and bream but also for use directly in the human diet.

We are planning on submitting our engineered Camelina for approval in South American countries, followed by North America. We believe that attitudes toward biotech crops and products produced may be changing as consumers see sustainability and product benefits in the new crops coming forward in development. Producing omega-3 oil on land, in Camelina, presents clear benefits in nutrition and sustainability versus extracting oil from wild-caught fish.

Dr. Oliver Peoples is the CEO atYield10 Bioscience, an agricultural bioscience companyfocusing on the development of disruptive technologies to produce step-change improvements in crop yield for food and feed crops to enhanceglobal food security. Prior to founding Metabolix, Dr. Peoples was a research scientist with the Department of Biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Find him on Twitter@Yield10Bio

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A shortage of healthful omega-3 fatty acid from fish looms as the global climate heats up. Here is a plant-based biotechnology solution - Genetic...

TOM MAY: What happens when morals and values are absent? – Evening News and Tribune

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

C.S. Lewis wrote several fiction and non-fiction books that are still enjoyed by readers today, almost 50 years since his passing. His books serve as a commentary with insight into culture, humanity and the place of faith. His writings continue to deserve our attention as society continues to shift direction, struggling for meaning and fulfillment.

His book, The Abolition of Man, continues to be one of his most challenging works. Many literary and theological scholars consider it his most difficult book. The book isnt lengthy, but its argument is profound. Lewis perceived that our institutions of education and the influences of culture walked arm-in-arm with policies that were removing our ability to make moral judgments and hold to virtue.

Breakpoint.org, the website for the Colson Center promoting a Christian worldview, has focused several articles on the book during this past month. John Stonestreet, president of the Center, says the book is a must-read especially in our cultural moment. Lewis concern for the shifts in culture grew from his observation that without morality, humans would become less human.

Abolition was written by Lewis in 1943. The book carries the subtitle, Reflections on education with special reference to the teaching of English in the upper forms of schools. The book started as a series of lectures that Lewis delivered in England.

The foundation of the concerns of Lewis centered upon how truth is taught in culture. Ultimately a shift in understanding began with the questioning of absolute truth to truth that is appropriate and relevant for the individual. The unspoken premise of no absolute truth is then reinforced through the teaching of subjective truth as opposed to objective truth. Subjective truth depends upon the individuals perspective and their emotional reaction to it.

Shifting away from objective truth carries important implications. Lets think about a headline this past week that was actually developing during Lewis time, but started even 50 years prior.

On Oct. 20, the NPR website announced that scientists had attached a pigs kidney to a human body and watched it begin to work. The procedure was only a temporary solution, but it was a step in a process that had taken several decades to achieve. Surgeons in New York performed the operation in which the organ functioned normally for 54 hours. Speculation rises that the accomplishment may open a door to a new supply of needed organs.

There was a time when such a headline would have stirred debate and discussion about the dangers involved in genetic engineering. Who will regulate the decisions involved in such a life-changing technology? Are there psychological issues involved in combining organs from two different beings a human and an animal? Are there spiritual or religious issues that are involved in such science? Several years ago, we would have discussed such a transplant.

But it wasnt too long ago that such a headline would have appalled its readers. Books like H.G. Wells The Island of Doctor Moreau and George Orwells 1984 and Animal Farm shocked people with tales of genetic engineering, human cloning and manipulation of behavior. A hundred years ago, we would not have even discussed this issue because it belonged to the realm of science fiction, not the world that we live in.

Today, the headline spurs a different type of debate. Less than a day later, PETA issued a statement urging humans to fix the organ shortage and not use pigs. Pigs arent spare parts and should never be used as such just because humans are too self-centered to donate their bodies to patients desperate for organ transplants. Today, our concern is for the pigs.

A similar pattern could be traced around dozens of topics. What was morally appalling decades ago doesnt even register a blip on the radar of ethics today.

Lewis was almost prophetic with his arguments. He believed that relativism teaching that there are no absolute, objective truths would lead to moral decay and the absence of virtue in culture. With no universal moral code, we become less than human. We are intelligent men who behave like animals. Lewis uses the phrase we are men without chests.

Lewis borrows the symbolism from the philosopher Plato. The Greeks saw the head as the home of the intellect. Meanwhile, the belly housed the raw passions and appetite. The chest formed virtue, a trained blend between the reason of the mind and the emotion of the heart. According to Plato, the head rules the belly through the chest.

Modern education, according to Lewis, produced men without chests demanding correct behavior from people who lacked values and virtue.

Lewis warns of the dangers of a culture that educates people with no standard for morals and values. We make men without chests and expect from them virtue and enterprise. We laugh at honor and are shocked to find traitors in our midst.

Lewis concludes in this manner: It may even be said that it is by this middle element that man is man: for by his intellect he is mere spirit and by his appetite mere animal A persevering devotion to truth, a nice sense of intellectual honor, cannot be long maintained without the aid of a sentiment.

Andrew Wilson put it like this: Without sentiment we may appear intellectual, but it will be a mirage; our heads will look larger, but only because our chests are so small.

The Christians answer to a culture with no virtue? Speak the truth with love.

The C.S. Lewis Institute website reflects: The apostle Paul writes The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith (1 Timothy 1:5 ESV). If followers of Christ live as people with chests strong hearts filled with Gods truth the world will take notice.

Tom May is a freelance writer who has held paid and volunteer ministry positions at several churches in the tri-state area. Reach him at tgmay001@gmail.com.

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Global Genome Editing Market 2021 Size Share Upcoming Trends Segmentation And Forecast To 2027 Chip Design Magazine – Chip Design Magazine

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

The Genome Editing market report contains a detailed focused scene in which major players (OriGene, Thermo Fisher Scientific, NEB, Integrated DNA Technologies Inc, Lonza Group Ltd., Sangamo, GenScript, Transposagen, IDT, Horizon) are profiled. Various companies engaged with the Genome Editing are studies. TheGenome Editing market research reportgives a worldwide viewpoint. This can help the end consumer to make the right decision which ultimately leads to the development of the Genome Editing market. This brand-new report covers the current COVID-19 impact on the global market. Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemics have affected every aspect of life globally. This has brought many changes in the market conditions. Initial and future assessments of the rapidly changing market landscape and impact are included in the report.

(The report sample of this is easily available on request).

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According to the study, the market was predicted to grow at a CAGR of approximately xx% through the forecast period to strikeUSD xx million by 2026, reaching USD xx million in 2020.

The report gives a forward-looking viewpoint on different driving and limiting factors needed for the development ofthe Genome Editing market. It provides forecasts based on how the market should be developed. Their general organization review, key financial aspects, major progress, SWOT analysis, competitive analysis, growth and strategies are studied and discussed in the Genome Editing market report.

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OriGene, Thermo Fisher Scientific, NEB, Integrated DNA Technologies Inc, Lonza Group Ltd., Sangamo, GenScript, Transposagen, IDT, Horizon, among others

(Note: Driving key market players in the Genome Editing industry are scrutinized in the report along with their financial analysis, SWOT profile, business overview, products & services, operations, and geographical locations.)

This report studies the Genome Editing market based on its classifications. In addition to this, major regions (North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, The Middle East and Africa, etc.) are also studies via this report. This report offers a detailed examination of the market by studying aggressive factors of the Genome Editing market. It also helps in identifying the main product sectors and their forecast in the years to come.

Global Market Segmentation by Product Type:

CRISPR, TALEN, ZFN, Antisense, Other Technologies

Global Industry Segmentation by Application:

Cell Line Engineering, Animal Genetic Engineering, Plant Genetic Engineering, Other Applications

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The foundation of the Genome Editing market is also mentioned in the report that can allow the consumers in applying primary techniques to gain a competitive advantage. Such far-reaching and in-depth analyzes give the necessary detail with key ideas and honest scalable analysis. It can be used to improve the current state and to plan future expansion in a particular section in the Genome Editing market.

Imperial regions are studied all over the world and the types, drivers, development, restraints, and challenges that influence the growth of the Genome Editing market are taken into consideration on these essential geologies. Research on the impact of government strategies and policies of Genome Editing market processes has also been added to give a comprehensive summary of the future of the Genome Editing market.

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Ancient Genomes and Proteomes Help Uncover Unexpected Origins and Cultural Connections – Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

With over 300 tombs, the Little River (Xiaohe) Cemetery, a Bronze Age burial located in the Tarim Basin in Xinjiang, Western China, contains the largest number of mummies found at any single site to date. Located on the Silk Road at the confluence of the Eastern and Western cultures, the naturally mummified human remains in boat coffins dating to circa 2,000 BCE to 200 CE have inspired speculations on their enigmatic origins.

Whereas some placed the origin of these mummies among the early farmers of the Iranian Plateau, many believed their origins to be Caucasoiddescendants of migrating Yamnaya herders from the steppes of the Black Sea region of southern Russiadue to their Western physical appearance, clothing, and agropastoral economy. This has led to global attention on these archeological remains.

To solve this enigma, an international team of scientists from Jilin University, the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Seoul National University of Korea, and Harvard University have generated and analyzed genome-wide data from thirteen of the earliest known Tarim Basin mummies, dating to circa 2,100 to 1,700 BCE, together with five individuals dating to circa 3,000 to 2,800 BCE, from the neighboring Dzungarian Basin.

This premiere genome-scale study of prehistoric populations in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region is reported in an article in the journal Nature titled, The genomic origins of the Bronze Age Tarim Basin mummies.

A naturally mummified woman from burial M11 of the Xiaohe cemetery. [Wenying Li/Xinjiang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology]Contrary to their expectations, the genomic study found that the Tarim Basin mummies were not newcomers to the area but rather appear to be direct descendants of Ancient North Eurasiansa once widespread Pleistocene population that had nearly disappeared by the end of the last Ice Age. This population survives only fractionally in the genomes of present-day populations, with Indigenous populations in Siberia and the Americas having the highest known proportions, at about 40%.

In contrast to present day populations, genomes of the Tarim Basin mummies show no admixture with other Holocene groups, demonstrating their genetic isolation.

Archaeogeneticists have long searched for Holocene Ancient North Eurasians populations to better understand the genetic history of Inner Eurasia. We have found one in the most unexpected place, says Choongwon Jeong, a senior author of the study and a professor of Biological Sciences at Seoul National University.

Genome analysis of the neighboring Dzungarian Basin mummies showed that they descended not only from local populations but also from Western steppe cattle herders with strong genetic links to the Early Bronze Age Yamanya. The genetic characterization of the Early Bronze Age Dzungarians also helped to clarify the ancestry of other cattle faming groups (Chemurchek) who later spread northward to the Altai mountains and into Mongolia.

These findings add to our understanding of the eastward dispersal of Yamnaya ancestry and the scenarios under which admixture occurred when they first met the populations of Inner Asia, says Chao Ning, co-lead author of the study and a professor at the School of Archaeology and Museology at Peking University.

The widespread genetic mixing all around the Tarim Basin throughout the Bronze Age make it even more remarkable that the Tarim Basin mummies exhibit no evidence of genetic admixture. Yet, they were not culturally isolated.

Typical Xiaohe boat coffin with oar. The coffin is covered with a cattle hide. [Wenying Li/Xinjiang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology]Dietary proteins are trapped in calcifying dental plaque (dental calculus) and preserve a record of the individuals diet. Proteomic analysis of dental calculus from the Tarim mummies show cattle, sheep, and goat dairying was already practiced by the founding population, and that they were connected to neighboring cultures, cuisines, and technologies.

Despite being genetically isolated, the Bronze Age peoples of the Tarim Basin were remarkably culturally cosmopolitanthey built their cuisine around wheat and dairy from the West Asia, millet from East Asia, and medicinal plants like Ephedrafrom Central Asia, says Christina Warinner, a senior author of the study, a professor of Anthropology at Harvard University, and a research group leader at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany.

Dietary DNA is difficult to recover from dental calculus, and DNA cannot be used to easily distinguish specific dietary sources (e.g., meat vs. milk). Proteomics is more suitable for studying ancient diets in this context, explains Warinner.

One of the technical challenges of sequencing ancient genomes is DNA damage. The length of ancient DNA is short and contains specific forms of damage (cytosine deamination). We use this expected form of damage to authenticate DNA fragments as being ancient and to ensure accurate sequence calls. To analyze the ancient DNA sequences, we used software pipelines specifically designed for analyzing ultrashort fragments of ancient DNA, explains Warinner.

The new genomic and proteomic data presented in the paper builds upon decades of painstaking archaeological work that has fostered insights on the lifestyle and culture of the early inhabitants of the Tarim Basin. Warinner clarifies, We were able to contribute new genomic and proteomic data to this rich body of knowledge, including the first whole genome sequences for the Tarim Basin mummies. Together with our archaeologist colleagues and coauthors, we have been able to reconstruct a more complete and complex picture of the populations who first colonized the Tarim Basin more than 4,000 years ago.

Reconstructing the origins of the Tarim Basin mummies has had a transformative effect on our understanding of the region, and we will continue the study of ancient human genomes in other eras to gain a deeper understanding of the human migration history in the Eurasian steppes, says Yinquiu Cui, a senior author of the study and professor in the School of Life Sciences at Jilin University.

Future palaeogenomic and archeological research on subsequent Tarim Basin populations will focus on better understanding the later history of populations in the Tarim Basin and their role in the rise of Silk Road trade networks, says Warinner.

The Tarim mummy genomes provide a critical reference point for genetically modeling Holocene-era populations and reconstructing the population history of Asia, the authors conclude.

Ancient Genomes and Proteomes Help Uncover Unexpected Origins and Cultural Connections - Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News

Caribbean Business – The Wealthiest Countries In The Caribbean In Gold – Caribbean and Latin America Daily News – News Americas

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

By NAN Staff Writer

News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Fri. Oct. 29, 2021: The Caribbean may be dismissed as small, but at least five countries in the region, including Haiti, stacks up pretty high when it comes to gold reserves.

Heres where they stack up in the Top 5 based on reserves of gold as of the latest data.

1: Aruba 3.11 billion tonnes

2: Haiti USD 1.81 billion tonnes

3: Suriname 1.46 billion tonnes

4: Trinidad & Tobago 1.94 billion tonnes

5: Dominican Republic 0.57 tonnes.

This comes as the World Bank released its Changing Wealth of Nations 2021 report. The Top 5 Caribbean countries on the World Banks total wealth list, based on measuring the economic value of renewable natural capital such as forests, cropland, and ocean resources; nonrenewable natural capital such as minerals and fossil fuels; human capital earnings over a persons lifetime; produced capital, such as buildings and infrastructure; and net foreign assets. The report also accounts for blue natural capital in the form of mangroves and ocean fisheries for the first time.

Heres The Caribbeans Top 5

Trinidad & Tobago USD 117,979 million

Suriname USD 92,740 million

The Dominican Republic USD 77,101 million

Jamaica USD 67,740 million

Guyana USD 62,740 million

The Changing Wealth of Nations provides the data and analysis to help governments get prices and policies right for sustainable development,saidWorld Bank Global Director for Environment, Natural Resources, and the Blue Economy, Karin Kemper.By ignoring polluting and climate warming impacts, fossil fuel assets have historically been overvalued, while assets that contribute to climate mitigation, like forests, are undervalued.

Although total wealth has nearly doubled inLatin America and the Caribbeanover the past two decades, there are significant contrasts in the trends of wealth per capita. Some countries have more than doubled their wealth since 1995, while in several Caribbean countries, total wealth per capita has declined. Over time, wealth in nonrenewable natural capital has begun to decline, due to price volatility, but renewable wealth is increasing. Wealth in protected areas has more than doubled, despite the fact that land area of forests has declined. Female labor force participation is higher than in any other region, but Latin America and the Caribbean has still not reached gender parity in its human capital.

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This Caribbean Island Reports Over 690 New COVID-19 Cases In One Day – Caribbean and Latin America Daily News – News Americas

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Danzig

By NAN Staff Writer

News Americas, NEW YORK, NY Mon. Nov. 1, 2021: One Caribbean country reported over 690 new COVID-19 cases Sunday, the highest in the region.

The Dominican Republic reported 693 cases Sunday, to take the tally to 381,667. They also reported 1 new death toll.

Cuba, meanwhile, reported 676 new cases to take the total to 952,001. There were 6 new deaths reported.

Meanwhile, Trinidad & Tobagos Ministry of Health announced 208 new COVID-19 cases to the total to 57,329. They also announced 14 new deaths from COVID-19, including a 4th death attribute to the Delta variant. The Ministry has also confirmed 20 new Delta cases. Of these new cases, 18 had no travel history.

Eleven had prior contact with confirmed COVID cases or symptomatic cases of flu-like illness. This brings the total number of cases of the COVID-19 Delta Variant which have been confirmed for Trinidad and Tobago to 156.

Jamaica added another 107 new cases to take the total to 89,014 while the island reported 7 new deaths. The total death toll is now 2,236.

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